Ezria: Forbidden Love
by Kkagomes
Summary: It's the first part of Ezria's relationship. What will happen when they go to school and find each other? Teacher and student?
1. Chapter 1

The freedom of summer had come to an end and the sheriffs have us back in our cells for another one hundred eighty days. I began my time with English. We had a new teacher and everyone was curious to see what type he was, one we could fool, one who was fun, one who was strict, etc. When we walked in he was busy writing the different rules and procedures on the board. His hair was a rich black with distinct curls embedded in it. All of his clothes looked new, the typical teacher attire, beige dress pants without a single wrinkle and a navy blue dress shirt that outlined his biceps perfectly. His hand finally stopped writing and he turned around.  
My heart sank into an endless pit and my eyes became ten sizes too big. The memories flooded into my head like a tidal wave, made for destruction. Though I knew what was happening it still wasn't processing. I kept seeing that first glance over and over again. My palms became clammy and cold. He was my teacher, my boyfriend was my teacher.

After about five minutes of him being oblivious to the situation, we locked eyes. He stopped talking and stared at me with the eyes of a little boy watching a horror film. His soothing voice became dry and distant. I didn't hear a thing all class due to my obnoxiously loud thoughts. When English ended I bolted out the door and did not turn back.  
All day every word anyone spoke to me was bounced off an invisible shield. I was in my own world, my own messed up world. I kept thinking about him, then about me and finally, us. When we first met at the bar that Saturday night it seemed like fate. We were both writers who had interest in teaching and we started by talking about our favorite authors and books. Soon it became a regular thing, going to coffee shops, pizza parlors and different places around town. He had mentioned his new job briefly, but never went into detail. The irony is incredible, I mean there are a million different high schools in the area and Ezra decides to teach at Rosewood High, the same place that girl he met at the bar goes.  
I have no clue what is going to happen between us. Even though we've only been going out for a couple months we just have amazing chemistry that it would break me to let go of all that and pretend it never happened. I didn't see him all day except first period and I highly doubt he even came out of his classroom. Last period did not go by fast enough but I couldn't wait to talk to him, yet again I guess I could. The final bell rings and my throat goes dry and my hands begin to shake. My mind is racing as our perfect relationship slowly falls apart.


	2. My Head Is Spinning

After school I needed to get my mind onto something else so I decided to drive to the coffee shop down the street. The drive seemed to take forever as the already long day seemed to drag on even longer. I parked in front of the beat up green door and decided I really didn't want to get out so I sat in my car and just looked around for some type of a quiet scene. My heart was beating uncontrollably as I thought about it all. My phone buzzed which instantly made my head light and throat dry. I couldn't stop my shaking hand from pressing the 'read message' button. The text wasn't from him though, it was worse. "Great way to start off the year... with a very personal tutor. Kisses -A". I didn't care who it was but all I could hear over and over again was "someone else knows, someone else knows."  
I woke up to a blinding pain in my head and the feeling of a hospital gown. When I saw Ali I knew I was hallucinating, but just in case.  
"Is that really you?" It sounded stupid but what do you say to someone who's been missing for almost a year?  
"Who else would it be sweetie?" She scoffed one of her infamous sarcastic comments.  
"I thought you were gone... Where did you go that night?" I couldn't really comprehend what I was even saying with the throbbing in my skull distracting me.  
"You'll figure it out, don't worry. And remember, honey, you're always better off with a lie." and with that she walked out. Before i even tried to wrap my head around what just happend my eyes shut.

"Aria?" My mom rested her hand on the white sheets and my dad hovered over my opposite side.  
"Mom?" I winced even to that small phrase and she could tell I was in horrific pain.  
"Go back to sleep we'll be here." When my drooping eyelids won the battle, I kept hearing the same sentence over and over as I watched myself fall onto the pavement, "Someone else knows! Someone else knows!" In the dream Ezra was watching and so was Ali. My parents woke me up around ten o'clock to tell me they were going home to check on Mike, my brother, and would be back in the morning. I couldn't fall back asleep so I attempted to stand up and take a walk, but I had no success. As I layed back down I saw my phone light up next to me and I reluctantly grabbed it. 'Ezra: 5 missed calls' 'Ezra: 6 messages', since we had to talk eventually I think now was that time.  
"Aria?" His voice was still distant.  
"Hi..." That's all I could muster up.  
"You know this isn't going to work over the phone right?"  
"I know, are you home now?" I sounded a bit more confident since he didn't sound too worried.  
"Yes," I didn't even let him finish his sentence when I told him to come meet me at the hospital and I would explain later. It took him ten minutes at the most to get across town and in my room.  
"Hey Ez- Mr. Fitz..." I started stuttering and my face was turning a fiery red.  
"Aria, just call me Ezra, it's ok." His warm hand and comforting gaze calmed me down as I tried to get the right words out. "You said you would explain how you ended up in here?" I smiled at his ability to make me feel comfortable.  
"Well I'll start with my morning and work my way to now." He laughed at my quirkiness. I told him the whole story which only took an hour and he held my hand through every part. Except the part I didn't tell him which was the whole text that someone else knows.  
"Listen to me, if you want this to work we can make this work, if we can get through this we can get through anything." After he said that my whole body went back to it's normal state.  
We talked for awhile then my eyes started to get heavy and I fell into a deep sleep. I woke up to my parents and the sweet smell of fresh donuts. I just felt more relaxed with everything I did, I didn't realize how tense I had been. These past couple days deserve their own tv series.


	3. Friends Share Secrets

My best friends who were in "the group" with Ali, came in to visit after my parents left. Even though it was my last day in the hospital, I figured it would be nice to talk to them. There is four of us, now anyways, Hanna, Spencer, Emily and me. I could tell they were coming when five inch heels were tapping the floor and Spencer's distinct voice was echoing down the hall. Without even saying "Hi", I was immediately bombarded with questions.  
"What the heck happened Aria?"  
"Who were you with?"  
"Were you mugged?!"  
My head was spinning even more than it has been. "Hold on!" They all stopped in response to my boisterous reaction. "Thank you," I couldn't help but laugh at this not surprising behavior. "I fell and hit my head on the concrete in front of the coffee shop."  
"Were you alone, was anyone else around?" That was Spencer's mom's side kicking in, she was a lawyer so it was in her blood.  
"I thought I was alone, but there's way too much stuff going on now that I can't keep them straight." I wasn't sure whether it would even be safe to tell them about Ezra and me.  
"Aria, we have time, I mean after all we've been through together little life issues are ok to share." Hanna gave a reassuring smile and Emily and Spencer nodded in agreement.  
I took a deep breath and basically threatened their lives if they told a soul. "You know Mr. Fitz? The new english teacher?"  
They all got grins that I did not want to see right now. "Aria has a little crush?" Emily was the first to speak what they were thinking.  
I felt like I was swallowing a horse and I think my face got really white because they all put their worried faces on. "It's um... It's a little more complicated..." I kept swallowing and sweating. "We are are um... dating." 'Dating' was a little high pitched and my heart started racing.  
Of course Hanna was the first to comment. "Oh, well that was a curveball..." There was a long awkward pause.  
"I get if you think I'm a total freak and that it's really weird-"  
"Seriously after being friends with Ali and going through what we've been through with her, this is not that bad." Spencer was only trying to make me feel better because she didn't seem that confident.  
"So, um how is Melissa's wedding planning going Spence?" Emily wisely changed the subject.  
"Oh my god, do you even want me to start? She is a total bridezilla! Everyday there's a new part she has to plan, more food to decide on, dress designs and other things that I could go on for forever about." She took sigh and rolled her eyes.  
"Well you know how it is being the younger sister, I can't believe you didn't expect this." Hanna smiled.  
"But, what was there to expect I mean she is making me plan all this stuff and call all these people while she gets her hair and nails done everyday to "prep"."  
"I've gotta go with Han on this one, sorry Spencer." I was so happy to be part of the conversation, it was just like old times.  
My nurse poked her head in and told me I could check out now. The girls offered to drive me home and have a little "party" at my house. I started to pack my bags but got interuppted. There was a sheet of paper tucked in the back pocket of my jeans, I knew it was new since I just washed them. I opened the crumpled piece of paper and read the note, 'Don't worry about telling your dad about Ezra, he will completely understand the attraction -A'. My mind started racing back to another lifetime when me and Ali were walking down the street and caught my dad and one of his students kissing in his car. He turned around and we locked eyes. After that day Ali constantly blackmailed me using that scene. I looked around even though no one else was in the room A obviously doesn't want me to know who they are.

"So, I know it's a touchy subject but has anyone talked to Mrs. D since they moved?" Mrs. Dilaurentis was Ali's mother who became a hermit after her disappearance.  
"I haven't but I think people are finally moving in today." Emily said as she recieved a text.  
"Who's that?" Spencer turned towards Em.  
"It's um... my mom." She quickly replied.  
"Oh, how's she doing? With your dad changing bases?" Emily's dad was in the army and was being moved from Fort Hood overseas.  
"She taking it real well!" She forced a smile onto her face. We were almost to my house when we were stopped by traffic in front of the Dilaurentis' old house.  
"Hanna can you check out what's going on? I can't see in front of this truck." Hanna readjusted herself and popped her head out the window to get a better view of what was in front of us. It was odd to have traffic like this since it's a side street and nowhere near the center of town.  
"I see a bunch of police lights reflecting but that's about it." The truck in front of us started to inch forward so we got a much better view. Police cruisers and ambulances were covering the Dilaurentis' driveway and most of the street was blocked off though there was enough room for one car to get through at a time. The new family that owned the house was standing in front on the driveway.  
"Hanna pull over now." Emily could be very stern when she wanted to be. She pulled up on the curb right before the string of police tape hanging limply.  
"I know the daughter of that family, remember the new girl I had to show around? That's her, Maya St. Germain I'll see if she'll tell us anything she knows we were friends with Alison." We all unbuckled and opened the doors but when I went to get up my head began to spin.  
"I'm going to stay in the car, my head still kind of hurts." I watch as the three of them walk up to the police tape and call Maya over. Since I couldn't hear them I tried playing around on my phone to figure out A's identity. It was probably some jerk who hated Alison's queen-like ways and was trying to get back at me for whatever reason. I finally got part of a number and looked it up to find there was no owner to the number. I texted the number back and told them the joke was up and I knew who they were. After two seconds I got a reply, 'Miss Aria you have no idea who I am. I can see your useless efforts to find my identity. I have a proposal, if you truly care about your friends join the me or you might be going to three more funerals. Kisses -A' I was on the verge of tears but I was afraid to move, A was watching me. I felt so weak at the moment, it was probably some jerk, all bark no bite. I didn't reply.  
"Aria!" I didn't even notice Emily banging at the window, I was so lost in thought about Ali possibly being alive and how real she looked in the hospital.


	4. A is for Alison

"Oh!" I unlocked the car with shaky hands.  
"Um you ok Aria?" Hanna looked concerned.  
"Yeah! I'm just a little dizzy the nurse said that I would have headaches for a few weeks." I readjusted my seatbelt feeling a little warm suddenly. "What did Maya say?"  
"Um," They all looked at each other with wet eyes.  
"They found a body Aria, it was pretty rotted but they're almost certain it's Alison's" I was shocked, my life was falling apart every hope and dream I had was being crushed by hardcore facts. I felt hot, steaming tears running down my face in small streams I felt the pressure building inside of me. We all sat in the parked car silently weeping at Ali's confirmed death, but I was crying for more than that.  
"Let's go back to my place you guys can stay over." I said with a scratchy voice. All of our eyes were still damp, bright red and puffy. The car ride home was silent you could've heard a pin drop, but if I could read minds I don't think it would be this quiet. Hanna pulled into my driveway and we all got out quietly mourning our shocking loss. Emily's mom was the first to call, then Spencer's, then mine, then Hanna's, Alison's face was all over the news. "MISSING GIRL FROM ROSEWOOD FOUND DEAD" "SHOCKING TWIST FOR A MISSING TEEN". Just looking at her smiling on the tv screen flooded my mind with memories of that dangerous smile. When Ali was having fun someone else wasn't. A perfect example of that was 'The Jenna Thing' it's way too risky to even think about.  
"Is anyone hungry?" I began to fade out because I knew they were not hungry. It began to dawn on us the burdens that Ali left for us. She left behind so many people who were practically tortured by her everyday. Now if you're wondering why we were such good friends with her, she was the best friend in the world. That is unless you were on her bad side. That's when I got it! Alison is A. It's so obvious, A for Alison.

We all sat there in silence as my gears turned rapidly in my head. Why wouldn't she at least tell us she was alive? Well I guess when she came in the hospital but I thought that was just a hallucination. It did seem so real she looked so real. I had to stop thinking about it, too much had been going on that day to be thinking of Ali being alive as her obituary was being written.  
"Can we shut this off for a little while?" Hanna looked terrible. The tv clicked off, I was kind of glad we shut it off too. The newscasters were talking about Ali like they were with her all sixteen years.  
My phone buzzed, it was Ezra I had to answer. I moved myself into the other room. "Hello?"  
"Hey, are you okay?" He sounded worried.  
"Yeah, just a little headache but I'm okay. Are you okay?"  
"Aria, I heard about Alison. I'm on my way over now." I couldn't stop the tears from pouring out it just didn't seem real. Today had been the most stressful day of my life, I completely forgot about the girls being over. I don't think they believed me about us dating and I don't need them to be reassured. I saw the headlights and scrambled out to the driveway. The girls were in the back room upstairs so they had no way of seeing him.  
"Hey!" I was breathing heavy from running outside. He got out of his car and just held me. He knew I was faking the upbeat attitude, I began to cry again since my cover was blown.  
"It's ok." His soft hands stroked my hair. "Let's go inside." Our hands started to interlock until I stopped us.  
"My friends are over. Wait in your car and I'll be right back." I looked into his deep brown eyes that made me melt into a million pieces. I ran into the house and up to the back room. They all stopped whatever they were doing and looked at me.  
"Where have you been?" They all looked concerned.  
"Oh, um I'm sorry but the Brew just called and they need me right now for the after dinner rush." I tried to put my best disappointed face on. All three of them just looked at me dumbfounded because the Brew never needs extra help since they have four people per shift in a small coffee shop. Just to really convince them, "One of the people on shift now had to leave early."  
"Okay..." They started packing their stuff.  
"I'm so sorry, I know we were supposed to help each other right now but I need the money and-"  
"We get it Aria, you don't have to explain yourself. I just have to get my stuff together you don't have to wait, I'll lock the door." Spencer was trustworthy.  
"Okay, thanks and again I'm so sorry." I ran back downstairs and out the door before they could pack up and see me. I hopped in the front seat of Ezra's car gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and we drove off.


	5. His Love

He grabbed my hand and held it for the rest of the ride, it felt good to feel safe. We sat in silence knowing it was the best thing right now. We pulled into a small hole in the wall restaurant with no one in there except the man behind the counter. He gave me one of his great smiles and we got out of the car and walked into the restaurant. We sat on the wooden chairs with the paper plates and napkins set up like fine china.

"So, how was your first day?" We started cracking up laughing since we both totally freaked out when we first saw each other in school.

"Well let's just say English is my favorite subject so far."

"You know you cannot tell anyone about this, not even your best friends." We got serious again.

"Of course I know. I wouldn't want to jeopardize this. It's just too perfect." We sat there taking in the moment thinking about everything and nothing at the same time. After about five minutes Ezra broke the silence.

"Let's order. What do you want?"

"Um, well this place looks like it would have an amazing vegetarian burrito."

"I would have to agree." We both smiled after looking around the dump of a restaurant. "Do you want to go somewhere else? This place looked a little better on the outside..."

"No it's perfect. I don't think anyone I know will come in here, and that's just what I need, a break." I gave a relaxing sigh.

"I'll go up to the counter and get our food." Ezra came back with two poorly wrapped veggie burritos. "Let's eat!" We both started dying laughing looking at the lettuce pouring out of our burritos.

"You must really like me Ezra. Giving up your Wednesday night to sit in a hole in the wall restaurant and eat vegetarian burritos with me." He just smiled and stared at me.

"I love you Aria and I wouldn't want to be doing anything else right now besides sit here and eat a veggie burrito."

"You know that I've never had any guy say anything like that to me."

"What? You've gone on a date like this before?" We started cracking up again.

"I'm just so happy right now. You know today was the most stressful day of my life and I can't think of anyone I would rather be with right now." We leaned across the table for a small kiss then finished our burritos. I didn't say one word I didn't mean, he was just so perfect. As much as I think Toby and Caleb are right for Hanna and Spencer they are both stuck together thinking about Ali non stop with nothing to get their minds off of her. I do I have Ezra to think about I have him to distract and comfort me. He's just so right.


	6. Oops!

"Let's go back to my apartment. I think you need a longer break." I looked dreamily into his eyes. He was almost too good for me. We walked back to his car and drove the fifteen minutes to his apartment. He let me in the door first and we sat on the couch as he held me close. My head was resting on his rock hard abs with my feet were on the couch. He leaned down and slightly touched my lips. That small peck gravitated my head upward. I grabbed his distinct jawline and pressed my lips against his. We continued until I was sitting up on his lap. Ezra held onto my hips with a firm but gentle grip. He was so passionate, I knew in this moment it was meant to be. We were so in love in that moment I hoped it would never end. Then we made it to his bed, and threw ourselves on top of it laughing like kids on a playground. I could tell he didn't want it to end either. We kept going and going, his face was so smooth. My mind was completely clear I totally forgot about why I was here, but in this moment I thought it was fate. I wrapped his arms around his neck and we just stared at each other smiling. Looking into each others eyes I could tell he felt the moment too. Since it was almost midnight I was getting sleepy so I rolled over next to Ezra and involuntary closed my eyes. I heard his breathing get heavier, figuring he fell asleep in my half asleep daze my brain also shut off for the night.

"Oh my god! Ezra!" I shook his arm up and down until his eyes were squinting from the sun peering through the shades.

"What is it?! Are you ok Aria?" He sat up within two seconds slamming his hands on the bed.

"I told my dad I'd be home by at least one in the morning."

"What are you going to tell him?"

"I'll just say it got late over Hanna's and since she lives across town she said we could stay over." I relaxed a bit knowing I had an alibi. "Okay well I've got to go check in with my dad. I'll come over later?"

Ezra's eyes bulged out of his sockets. "Um, Aria, it's Thursday." We both turned white as ghosts and bolted to a mirror. I threw on a sweatshirt so I didn't look like I was wearing the same clothes as yesterday and fixed my hair into a ponytail. "Bye!" I let Ezra leave first since it was his job to be at work. While I waited for enough time to pass before I left I checked my phone. 'Dad 2 missed calls', 'Hanna 4 messages', 'Mike 3 messages'. I read all the messages but was just going to tell them my phone died and I didn't have time to charge it until after school. I left the apartment and made it to school only an hour late.

"Where were you?" Hanna, Emily and Spencer all walked up to me with worried faces.

"I, I overslept..." I was overtaken by their concern.

"Aria I went to your house yesterday. Your dad said you were supposed to be at my house." Emily stated. "He sounded really mad when he saw you weren't with me. But, being your friend I decided to tell him you were with Hanna."

"Thank you so much." I spoke with sincerity.

"Now we saved you it's time for you to fess up. Where were you?" Hanna being her straightforward self.

"I was with my boyfriend, Holden. He's a family friend, it hasn't gotten serious yet and I don't know if it will so I haven't told anyone." I was very impressed at how good my lying has become.

"Aria you know you can tell us anything. We're here for you." Spencer said. "So what time are we meeting for Ali's funeral?"

"Spence you don't just casually bring up our best friend's funeral in a conversation." Hanna looked disgusted.

"Hanna calm down it's alright. We can meet at my house if you want come ready at three?" I figured I'd keep the conversation low key.

"That works for me." They all nodded their heads.

"So when can we meet this Holden." Emily teased after a five minute silence. Ali's funeral was a touchy subject obviously, we were with her two minutes before she was killed.

"Um, I don't know he doesn't know anyone knows yet so it may be a while." I continued to lie. I would do this forever, I loved Ezra Fitz so much.


	7. Sometimes Crying Is The Only Option

Ezra was only fifteen minutes late for work because of "a major traffic jam". I think that was part of the reason we were so close, we knew things about each other that we lied about to others. In class his soft lips moved from word to word with ease. We were reading the classic Romeo and Juliet. When Ezra explained how the scenes would relate to current situations he stared at me. When he taught his eyes lit up, he was so energetic and determined to teach. He loved his job so much and I felt like a roadblock sometimes, even though he would tell me the opposite. I never mentioned it to him because then he would start to worry and Ezra cares about me so much, when he worries, he is very worried.

I drove myself home, we all did just so we could get our thoughts ready for the dreaded funeral. Ali would have loved this gathering of people, people coming to pray for her. She craved attention, it was like her food source, she couldn't live without it. Even though Alison was a handful at times she could keep a secret. Anything you told her got locked up in this imaginary safe in her head and is about to be buried with her. She did threaten to unlock the safe sometimes. Her death came with a lot of regrets for everyone she knew. Some of us wished we trusted her more while others wished they trusted her less and some even regretted trusting her at all. I regretted not standing up to her when she threatened to blame 'The Jenna Thing' on me or any other secret I had trusted her with she was the only one who had the power to use it against me. She threatened me many times but it was over, she was gone now, she was gone I only saw a hallucination in the hospital nothing more. Alison Dilaurentis and everything thought and secret she had in her mind was about to be buried for good. During this thought my phone began to ring, it was Ezra.

"Hey Ezra!"

"Hey, um I just wanted to tell you that I am going to Ali's funeral today. Just taking a wild guess here but you're going to be sitting with your friends right?"

"Yeah."

"Well I just called to tell you that I will be there and if you need anything pretend I'm next to you. I'll try sitting behind you."

"Okay. Thank you so much. I love you." A small tear rolled down my cheek.

"Love you too." And with that I hung up. I sat there buried in my hands crying. I was crying for Ali and all of the good and bad times we had together, I cried for A this anonymous person is starting to scare me a bit, and finally I cried for my friends because Ezra and I were so perfect and happy but they can never know that, no one can ever know that. In the midst of crying I was yet again interrupted by my ringing phone, this time it was Hanna telling me she was on her way. I quickly applied make up that would hopefully satisfy everyone and threw on a black dress I bought the other day. I was just in time for the doorbell ring.

"Hi Hanna." She walked in with a solemn face. She was the most open about her feelings and even she was speechless. After a few minutes of awkward silence Emily rang and almost two seconds later Spencer came. All four of us walked out the door without saying a word to say goodbye to our best friend.


	8. Goodbye Alison

We all sat in silence in the first pew as the people around the church were trying to make small talk about Alison. There was a great picture of her on a stand directly in front of me. I didn't know if I could handle her being in my face while we mourned her death. That was how Ali was though. She was always there whether you wanted her to be or not. Keeping secrets is part of the reason Alison Dilaurentis so popular and feared at the same time. Ali would keep a secret for a price, anything she wanted, but with us the rules of the game were a little different. She would keep any secret, but would dangle it over our heads when we did something wrong. It was much worse than any manual labor or mentally ruining someone.

As I looked around the church it was filled to the brim with people who knew and loved Ali or who were glad to see her dead. That was Alison Dilaurentis for you, popular in life and death. Looking at the picture of Ali it didn't seem real. I could tell because her eyes looked sweet and innocent. When she looked at you in person it felt like she was reading your soul. Like she was reading every thought and secret you had stored away, it was a talent of hers, making people feel weak.

I finally saw Ezra walked in and gave him a fake smile I had plastered on along with the rest of my make up. He sat behind me as promised but we never had a verbal exchange but I knew he was telling me to stay strong. I could see it in his eyes. Now more than ever I wanted Ezra next to me, I wish he could sit beside me and not have to worry about being arrested. Toby and Caleb sat cozily next to Spencer and Hanna. Emily was the only single one but she just got over a nasty break up with a boy from school.

"Hello girls." A choked up Mrs. Dilaurentis managed to get out. We all had comforting faces on. She looked really bad, worse than the day they found Ali.

"Hi Mrs. D." Emily finally answered we were all so lost in sympathy for the poor woman who just lost her only daughter.

"I'm so glad you came. I wasn't sure if it would be too much, all of you were so close." She faded out as her eyes began to fill up.

"We wouldn't miss it for anything Alison was a great friend and will always be remembered as one." I felt like saying 'Oh yeah that's why she was murdered', but it seemed inappropriate.

"Well I just wanted to say thank you." And with that she walked away just before the first tear. We didn't speak after that. I wasn't in the mood anyway. I couldn't turn around to smile at Ezra because my face wouldn't let me smile. It even wiped off the fake smile, I was just so tired of all the things going on. Between Ezra, Alison, and A I felt defeated but I knew Ezra would be willing to help me through anything.

After the beautiful service we went to say our final goodbyes, Mrs.D let us have our own moments. I told Alison that she was a great friend and hopes she keeps all of our secrets safe. It didn't feel real though I felt like she was still missing and maybe would be forever.


	9. Our First Fight

Spencer, Emily and Hanna all went home. We needed a night alone, just to think about everything. I told my dad I was going over Hanna's, but I was told to come home at eight. At least I had that much time with Ezra. I called him on my way over and he told me he would make dinner. Ezra was a surprisingly good cook. I pulled into the parking lot and walked up to apartment 3B. I walked in with the key he gave me.

"Honey I'm home." I always tried lightening the mood when I was sad. Ezra just laughed.

"Dinner's on the table, honey." He walked over to me as I put my bag down and gave me a kiss. I joined in on the laughing and we sat down at his wooden table for two. After we stopped laughing he looked serious. "Aria, I really wanted to be next to you today."

"I wanted to be next to you too. True love always comes with a price, doesn't it?" I smirked a little as I scooped up some rice.

"Yeah I guess so. I just wish I could always be by your side when you need me. It just kills me inside to see you hurting with no one comforting you. You know that in school I can always tell whether your having a good or bad day?"

"I can tell how your day's going too."

"I love you so much Aria. Do you understand that I need you?" I was zoning out into my salad.

"I love you too." I said monotonously as I continued to play with my food.

"Aria what's wrong? I know about Alison but you just came in making jokes and now you looked like your about to cry. I can only be there for you if you want me too. I can tell you're hurting but I can't tell why."

"Well Ezra I just came back from my best friends funeral." I said a little too defensively so he was a little surprised.

"I know Aria and I told you I'm sorry about that but I can tell there's more. You looked distracted in church." He still remained calm.

"I can't do this right now." I got up and left apartment 3B. I walked down the narrow stairs and out to my car. I got in the car and sat there and cried until I had to go home. Hanna texted me to see how I was. My world was crumbling so slowly it was painful. By the time I got home I fixed my makeup and walked in like nothing happened and all was fine and dandy.

"Dad, Mike, I'm home!"

"Okay." My dad and I were never on the best terms. That is partially Ali's fault, I flashed back to a hot day in late May. We had just gotten ice cream after school and were walking to Ali's house. In a driveway behind a bush Ali pointed out my dad's car. When I saw what I saw my jaw dropped, even Alison was surprised. In the car sat my dad and one of his students. I'll never forget the feeling I got when he turned around and saw us looking at them. We continued walking and I ended up going home instead of her house. My dad didn't come home until 10:12 pm, I remember exactly. He was trying to avoid me because my bedtime was ten o'clock. Then two months after Ali went missing my mom got an anonymous letter telling her about my dad. I could've sworn it was Alison but I just got back from her funeral.


	10. Daddy's Little Girl

I got home at eight and was in bed by 8:15. I lay there thinking about him and his face when I left. I don't think he was expecting that, I wasn't either. I felt awful because all he wanted to do was comfort me and be with me through this tough time and I shut him out. Mike had a lacrosse game at eight so my dad had just left the house. I grabbed my phone and dialed Ezra's number.

"Hey." He answered the phone most likely unsure of my feelings.

"Hey, I feel really bad for what I did." I could've sworn I heard him relax.

"It's fine, I know this is really stressful for you." His tone went back to normal.

"No it's not fine. You would never do that to me and it was stupid."

"Thank you. By the way you didn't want the rest of your salad right?" I laughed quietly.

"No but it was delicious. Thank you for the dinner."

"Come over tomorrow ok?"

"Of course. Hey, do you want to come over right now? Mike and my dad are at Mike's lacrosse game until ten."

"Um, you sure?" I knew he was scared of them coming home early.

"Positive." He told me he'd be over in ten then we hung up. I was really happy he'd forgiven me so quickly but was also kind of mad because I didn't deserve that. I didn't deserve his sweet side right there. I deserved him giving me a hard time and I probably shouldn't have invited him over either. I played on my computer for a little while until he came over. When he walked in I gave him a huge hug and he rubbed my back. We stayed like this for a little while and it felt so good just to feel him with me. For a while we didn't then Ezra spoke up.

"Why don't we watch a movie?" We put on a black and white movie that was only an hour. I curled up on his lap with my head on his chest. He stroked my hair as we intently stared at the tv screen. Then something caught our attention. Out of the corner of my eye I saw headlights pull in the driveway. It couldn't be it was only 9:30.

"Ezra! Go into any room with a window and get out!"

"Why? Aria what's wrong?"

"My dad's back! Now go!" My heart was practically stopped as I ran around trying to get him out of the house. I was just pushing him out of the window when I heard the keys jingling as he walked up to the door. Once he was out the window we smiled at each other and then he walked up front. My dad was inside, but I forgot about Mike.

"Dad! Dad!" Mike was armed with his lacrosse stick.

"What?!" My dad burst out the door thinking Mike was hurt.

"Someone's in the bushes. I saw them run in there." He whispered. My dad grabbed the lacrosse stick from Mike and began to poke through the bushes. I watched the whole thing through the window. Ezra ran out the bushes and tried getting away. He took a wrong step and my dad caught up to him and whacked the lacrosse stick off of his head. Ezra fell face first into the rocky pavement. I ran out to his side and slowly took his hood off.

"Aria! What are you doing?! He could be dangerous!" Mike screamed but my dad just backed off.

"He's not dangerous." I managed to spit out of my clogged throat. As I looked at him, lying there unconscious, I began to cry over him. I tried to wipe the blood from his face but there was too much. "Can you at least call the police?" I was a little annoyed at the fact that they didn't think of it before. My dad didn't budge I think he was still shocked at the force he had used. I sat there with Ezra for two minutes until the police came accompanied by ambulances and fire trucks. I sobbed into my sweater as they put him on the stretcher. Before they left they asked if we were family or close friends. I hopped in the ambulance and told Mike and my dad I would explain later. Ezra had no family or friends out here they all lived in New York. He only moved here for his job. I stared at him the whole ride and kept flashing back to when we met at the bar.

I had a fight with my dad and he had my keys so I walked to the closest place, a hole in the wall bar. I could still see his bright smile and sparkle in his eyes when he looked at me. We started talking about our favorite books since I had 'The Great Gatsby' sticking out of my bag. Then after that we kept seeing each other.

My phone buzzed and I figured it was my dad or Mike so I grabbed it out of my pocket book.

'You thought you would get away with having him over. Well the game must've ended early... Kisses -A'

I was so mad, no I was beyond mad. I could live with A torturing me but Ezra was my territory. I needed to find out who this A was. I looked at Ezra's beat up face and instead of seeing my dad hitting him I saw A controlling my dad to hit him. He was so broken, he looked so pale and helpless. We pulled into the back of the hospital and they rushed him in. I was only allowed as far as the waiting room with the rest of the stress filled people. They were all either crying, pacing or zoning out into their own world. I was going to call my dad but I figured I would wait to explain when I was calm.

"Is someone here with Ezra Fitz?" The lady at the front desk called. I got up and made my way to the front of the room.

"I am."

"What's your name?"

"Um, Aria Montgomery." I told them I was a friend of his in case anything between the hospital and school crossed paths there would be no suspicions.

"Okay have family members been informed?" I knew Ezra had his parents and sister in New York but that was it. The only problem was I had no way to get to them since they didn't know about me yet.

"No, but I have no way to get in contact with them."

"Okay thank you. You can have a seat now." I sat down and cried because Ezra could potentially die because of my dad. For all I know he killed Alison.


	11. Fine By Me

When that thought struck me I continued to cry because at this point who knows. I got my mind off of Ali since that was surprisingly the least of my worries. My priorities were Ezra, then figure out who A is, and then grieve over Ali. I finally couldn't take waiting anymore and asked if I could see Ezra yet. After two and a half endless hours of waiting I needed something. I was told he just got out of surgery and was in pretty rough shape. She let me in the IC unit and warned me that most friends and family wait until the next day to see the patient because of the shape they were in. I didn't care and walked straight over to Ezra's bedside. The lady was right, he was in pretty rough shape. His face was disoriented and he had tubes everywhere you could imagine. The device monitoring his heart was your stereotypical heart monitor, the zig zag lines and beeping. I could barely look at him so helpless and I couldn't do anything for him. All I could do for him is look at him as he lay there in a coma. I could stare at him all I wanted but he still wouldn't wake up until he was mentally able too. Thinking about all this distracted me until my phone buzzed, it was Mike.

I gathered myself emotionally before beginning to speak, "Hello?"

"Aria, you told us you would call with an explanation, I think we deserve one." Mike

always worried about me.

"Can it wait until he's out of the hospital?"

"No Aria, right now."

I took a deep breath wishing I had Ezra here to calm me down, "That was my boyfriend, Ezra Fitz."

"Your English teacher?" Mike sounded disgusted.

"Um, yes." I nodded my head even though I knew he couldn't see me.

"Let me put dad on the phone." I knew he couldn't even talk to me anymore.

"Aria?" My dad's voice came over the phone. "Who was that? You told me you'd call with an explanation."

"That was my boyfriend and English teacher as you may have heard Mike mention." I got myself ready for the outburst.

"Okay, Aria Montgomery you are never allowed in this house again as long as you are dating that man. I never want to see you again as long as you and him are boyfriend and girlfriend."

I said, "That's fine." and hung up the phone. I was okay with that because I loved Ezra Fitz and he loved me. No matter what I was going to be the first thing he sees when he wakes up from this coma to any morning. I was going to ask to move in with him.


	12. Never Going To Let You Go

It was day three of Ezra's coma and the doctors had no update on him. I hadn't slept in two days. I was waiting for him to wake up I didn't want to miss it. Finally on my fourth cup of coffee that morning I couldn't keep my eyes open. I faded off to sleep dreaming happily about Ezra and me. Then I felt a tap on my shoulder and woke up quickly thinking Ezra was awake, I was wrong.

"Mike?" I was confused since I had just woken up and realized I had slept for twelve straight hours.

"I just came to say hi. I figured you'd be lonely." He smiled. He was such a good brother. It looked like he just came from school since he had his backpack.

"How'd you get here?" Realizing he didn't have a car.

"My friend drove me. Dad thinks I went to Ryan's." Mike was almost as bad as me, being such a good liar.

"Why'd you come? I thought you never wanted to see me again." I said half jokingly.

"That was dad who never wanted to see you again." He was upset by this and I could tell.

"Mike it's ok. I'll probably just move in with Ezra." I knew this subject was awkward for him but if anyone I wanted Mike to know where I was going to be.

"Okay, but I actually came to talk to you about something else..." He looked nervous.

"What? Are you okay?" I was concerned Mike was usually never nervous around me.

"Yeah, but I moved out last night after dad started flipping out for the third day in a row. I was wondering if we could get an apartment together. Since we both aren't living anywhere at the moment." I was shocked and proud that he stood up to my dad because he usually doesn't take sides.

"I would love that Mike but I make four dollars an hour and only work twenty five hours a week. And tips haven't been great lately..." I wanted to help Mike so bad but money was tight and Ezra obviously wouldn't charge me. "Maybe we can both live with Ezra for the time being. Unless you're uncomfortable with that I can make arrangements with Emily, Spencer or Hanna."

"Could you make arrangements with your friends because I need a place to sleep tonight and I'm only allowed in here until seven." Mike hated asking for help but he needed it desperately.

"I'll call Hanna right now. It's only her and her mom in the house so it wouldn't be too crowded." I turned my phone on, forgetting it's been off for three days and got bombarded with texts and missed calls. Seventy unread messages, fifty two missed calls, all from Hanna, Spencer and Emily. I called Hanna immediately, she was freaking out. They all thought I was kidnapped or something worse. I had to explain to them that me and Ezra were a couple, they were shocked and I made them swear on everything they would not tell anyone. Hanna didn't speak much after that but agreed to have Mike stay with them until Ezra woke up. I sent Mike to the store with the money I had in my pocket and told him to walk downstairs and get the necessities and Hanna would pick him up.

After Mike left I got lonely again. The night dragged on until Ezra's eyes began to flutter open. He looked at me and smiled. That was the first time a awhile I cried happy tears. I gave him a big hug and kiss and called the nurse over. He complained of a headache and didn't remember anything from the other night. I texted the girls and Mike that Ezra was awake while they ran some tests on him. Besides a minor concussion he was ready to leave the next morning. I finally slept easy and woke up early the next morning to Ezra looking at me.

"Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I think I got enough sleep over the past four days." He gave me a charming smile. I got up and got myself a cup of coffee since he couldn't have caffeine for a day or two. Then we were out of the hospital by ten o'clock. Mike and Hanna brought my car to the hospital the other day so we got into my car and I drove to his apartment. I was smiling and slightly crying at the same time. He asked what was wrong and I told him how scared I was that I was going to lose him. Ezra looked deep into my eyes and told me I would never lose him. He kissed my cheek as I kept driving.


	13. I Will Never Lose You

We got to his apartment and I smothered him. Constantly asking how he was feeling, if he was hungry and what he needed. Finally he told me to lay down with him and I did. His arm was wrapped around me and we just laid there staring at the ceiling. Ezra broke the silence.

"What time did your dad say to come home? I don't want to get you in trouble again."

"Never." Ezra was confused. "He kicked me out."

"What? What did you do Aria?" I explained everything that happened four nights ago. He had no reaction, I don't think he knew what to think. After telling him everything he kissed me and told me how much he loved me and how strong I was. He told me I was going to live with him and Mike was welcome but knew he may feel uncomfortable. We made plans to go out to dinner that night but had to go over my mom's first since it was the only place I could retrieve clothes from. Ezra fell asleep for a little while so I could go get ready at my mom's.

I got to her place and grabbed my red strapless dress with my black high heels. My mom asked where I was going so I figured I better tell her the whole story. I recited the story of four nights ago all the way back to Ezra's apartment in a record half hour. She didn't react as my dad did to me and Ezra's relationship. She was only happy because I was happy. After I put some makeup on and did my hair I left my mom's and drove back to pick Ezra up. I was gone an hour and a half so hopefully he was ready, I was really excited for tonight.

"Hey I'm back, you ready?" He walked in from the bathroom.

"Oh wow, you look amazing." Ezra had a white button up dress shirt on with black dress pants.

"You do too." We kissed then walked out the door.

"Where do you want to go?" I wanted him to pick tonight.

"I'm way ahead of you. I made reservations for a restaurant an hour and a half away from here." It kind of stunk that we couldn't go to a fancy restaurant close to here but there would be too much of a chance someone from school would be there.

"Great!" I was really happy we could have a normal conversation after the four days without speaking a word to each other. Ezra gave me the directions to the place and I followed. After an hour and a half of general conversation we got to the restaurant. It was amazing. "Oh my god Ezra." I threw my arms around him. The place was huge, beautiful fountains lined the stone walkway. Polished stone columns were lined like soldiers above the stairs that led to a large doorway. We walked inside to dimmed lights and soft chatter. The floor was a pearl white and the round tables had matching tablecloths. There was a small candle and rose at each table. Everyone was dressed in elegant dresses and suits. We were sat at a table in the middle of the dining area.

"This is so nice Ezra. I was really worried about you." We held hands across the table.

"You know I missed being with you those three days. When I woke up I could tell I missed something, something with you. I saw it in your eyes."

"I was just really happy you were alive. I could never live without you."

"Aria, I told you before that you are never going to lose me. I'll never let that happen." He squeezed my hands tight and stared at me with his big brown eyes. He let go of my hands and got out of his seat. My eyes followed him as he stood up and got down on one knee. I threw my hand over my mouth and my eyes began to fill up. We've been through so much and he's just so perfect. I love him so much and he loves me. He was with me every step of the way when my parents went separate ways. He has stayed with me even after we found out I was his student. He made sure I was okay when Ali went missing and after we found out she died. He helped me feel better when my dad got to me. I was so glad I stayed with him in his coma. Our first anniversary is next week.

"I was going to wait until next week, but I couldn't bare the possibility of losing you after what you said today. Aria, will you marry me?" I nodded my head as I kissed him forgetting about everyone around us. I was never going to lose Ezra Fitz.

**Thank you guys so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed review, review, review! If I get good reviews maybe a sequel?**


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